Some of the trees in Beth Moon‘s Portraits of Time photo series are 4000 years old, which means these trees were present when whoever you can recall from history was alive. They were around when Jesus was around for example, and even then they had been around for quite some time. They’ve seen history, climate changes and the whole process of our world becoming as we know it. And they’re still here.
Moon traveled to the US, Europe, Asia, the Middle East and to Africa over a period of 14 years to meet these impressive trees. And I like it that on her website, Moon describes what she calls ‘a noble process‘, the slow steps of making these photos reality. Platinum printing is disappearing these days, unfortunately, but just like the trees, the prints can last for thousands of years. In the age of digital photography, platinum printing seems to photography what the trees photographed seem to humanity: a reminder of the past, of endurance and of a slow paced life, as well as a question mark about our present and our future. ‘Standing as the Earth’s largest and oldest living monuments, I believe these symbolic trees will take on a greater significance, especially at a time when our focus is directed at finding better ways to live with the environment‘ says Moon for LensCulture.








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